And she realized that he was, in fact, a man who committed. A man who wouldn’t withdraw his loyalty and affection once it had been consciously given.
He might pull back when he was uncertain, or when he was afraid of opening himself up, or when his trust was broken. But once he’d given his heart to someone who treated it as it deserved, he wouldn’t take it away.
And she knew. She knew.
“Oh God!” she gasped, standing frozen for a moment, almost stunned by the realization.
“You all right, miss?” Nora asked.
“Yeah. Oh yeah!” She beamed at the other woman, feeling like her entire being had been transformed, had come to light.
Nora chuckled. “Well, you better go tell him.”
Allison ran to the door that led onto the porch and jerked it open, propelled into motion by a rush of feeling she’d never experienced before. Then she raced down to the beach, stumbling on the loose sand and running clumsily toward where Michael was still standing.
He must have heard her approach because he turned in her direction. The sun was setting behind him, so his face was fully shadowed.
But she knew—she could see—the alteration in his posture at her enthusiastic approach. It was like hope had sprung to life inside him.
“Allison?” he asked hoarsely, as she got nearer.
She didn’t answer, she just barreled into him, letting him reach out toward her in instinctive support. Her momentum caused them both to swing around on impact.
They were both laughing as they came to a stop. Michael’s arms were wrapped around her, and Allison was panting desperately.
“Allison?” he asked again, his blue-gray eyes like nothing she’d ever seen before.
“I thought about it,” she told him, unable to stop grinning.
He seemed to be having trouble keeping his expression sober as well. “That didn’t take you very long,” he murmured with impressive dryness. “And what were your conclusions?”
It all made such perfect sense to her now that she couldn’t believe she’d even hesitated. And she never wanted to stop seeing the blaze of passion and feeling that had ignited in Michael’s eyes.
So she said, “I want to try.”
Chapter Thirteen
Michael let Allison take his hand in hers as they walked, although the sentimental gesture felt somewhat contrary to his nature. It wasn’t that he disliked it. It was that he’d never have imagined himself as the kind of man who would walk along the beach with a woman hand-in-hand.
He’d done a lot of things in the last six months he’d never imagined himself doing.
It was an unseasonably warm evening, and the sun was setting in a splendor of oranges and purples at the horizon. A few months ago, Michael had sold his previous beach house and bought this one—the new house within sight of the recently restored lighthouse that had been damaged last year by the storm. A lighthouse that Michael had grown to love as he'd funded its repair and restoration.
He and Allison were on the last day of their three-day weekend. Tomorrow morning, they’d have to leave so she could return to D.C. and Michael to New York. He didn’t like the thought of how soon they’d have to part again, so he pushed the knowledge from his mind so he could enjoy the rest of the evening.
Allison was smiling to herself. The wind blew her loose hair back from her face and her long, gauzy skirt around her legs. She looked happy, relaxed, and satisfied. Michael loved to see her that way, since it was tangible proof that all the work they’d put into their relationship over the last several months had been worth it.
Ingrate was ahead of them on the beach, barking ferociously at the waves. He ran forward every time the water retreated and then scampered back as it advanced, barking in outrage that the waves would dare to launch such an unprovoked assault on him. The dog had never gotten used to the waves—no matter how often they’d brought him to the beach.
Allison laughed as she watched Ingrate take an excited nip at the retreating water and then shake himself off when all he got was wet.
Michael felt an odd mingling of pride and connection—at the knowledge that Allison loved their dog as much as he did. He’d never experienced that kind of connection with another person before, although he recognized now he’d been pursuing it all his life.
Acting on impulse, he reached out one arm and slipped it around her waist, pulling her small body against his. He leaned down to kiss her long and deep.
Allison was flushed and breathless when she finally pulled away. “Wow. What was that for?”
“I’ve told you before that I love your laugh.” Michael slid one hand down the line of her spine until he was grazing her bottom.
“Well, I love your laugh too. So, if you want to laugh, maybe I’ll reward you with a kiss too.”
Despite himself, Michael chuckled at the sparkling irony in her eyes and voice.
Allison was as good as her word. She put her hands on the sides of his head and pulled him down into another kiss. This one was so deep and sensuous that Michael’s body began to respond. He felt himself hardening against her, heat washing over him and his muscles starting to tighten as Allison’s soft curves shifted against him.
“Let’s go inside,” he said hoarsely, when he finally made himself tear his lips away from hers.
“Good idea.”
They walked slowly back to the house, pausing often to kiss. When they reached the deck, Michael quickly rinsed the sand off his feet and then took his time in rinsing off Allison’s with the outdoor spray. He was leaning over to tend to her, and he almost lost it when she purred in pleasure and leaned over to give the back of his neck a wet kiss.
Ingrate had been loping behind them, turning back often to stare in victorious satisfaction at the defeated waves. When they finally made it into the bedroom, the dog stretched out in front of fireplace, sniffing in disappointment at the lack of blaze.
It was too warm this evening for a fire, however. Michael’s skin was already hot, and perspiration ran down his forehead and the back of his neck.
Allison grabbed him and kissed him again as he tried to work on her clothes. He managed to push her skirt and panties down her legs but was prevented from pulling off her tank top until she consented to release him from the kiss. She helped him get rid of his clothes then, until they fell into the bed together naked.
Michael’s vision blurred as a swell of feeling overwhelmed him. He kissed her again, pressing down against her soft, warm, clinging body. She arched and writhed beneath him, clawing at his shoulders and back in her growing eagerness. Michael caressed her with almost clumsy urgency, kissing his way down her body as he tasted her heat and her passion.
He wanted to please her as much as he could, but his body was shaking with need. He knew he wouldn’t be able to wait much longer to feel her in the deepest way. So he repositioned his body between her legs, lining himself up at her entrance.
He met her eyes, saying nothing, not needing to say a word, as he pitched his pelvis forward and slid into her wet heat.
Allison gasped in pleasure, her neck arching at the penetration. She bucked up against him in a shameless demand for more.
Michael wanted to give her more. Wanted to give her everything.
Despite the months they’d been together, their lovemaking was just as deep and intense as it had been at the beginning. They moved together urgently, their hot skin sliding and sticking as they worked up a sweat in their carnal motion.
Allison’s gasps turned to moans of pleasure and then to helpless whimpers as the sensations built up to climax. Michael thrust with naked ardor, grunting almost primitively as lost himself in her feel, her scent, and her love.
She cried out as she came in a frantic shudder of release. Michael had to bite back a roar of relief as he could finally let himself go.
As the waves of sensation washed over him, as he let go of the reins of his passion and need, he heard himself repeating her name and that he loved her in hoar
se murmurs, over and over again.
Afterwards, he buried his face in her neck, stayed buried in her body despite being sated. Her arms and legs clung to him—with trust more than anything else. He wanted to bury himself in her completely.
And never let her go.
* * *
Early the next morning Allison woke with a heavy feeling in her gut. It was a familiar feeling now. The one that signaled her time with Michael was over.
She hated leaving him. Every time. And it was getting harder rather than easier as the months went by. She was seriously considering looking for a job in New York, but she didn’t want Michael to think she was pressuring him.
She was really ready to be done with the long-distance relationship, though. She wanted to be with Michael all the time.
Whatever reservations she’d had six months ago had entirely disappeared. Michael wasn’t an easy man, and a relationship with him would never be simple. But he was committed to her, and she’d never had reason to doubt it.
It seemed like a miracle, but she was certain that Michael had found something he’d always wanted in her. And she was so pleased and proud she was able to give it to him as well as receive it from him.
Both passion and unconditional love.
She rolled over, feeling the knot in her stomach intensify when she saw that Michael had already gotten up. His side of the bed was filled with nothing but rumpled covers.
Before she could indulge in a bout of self-pity, the bedroom door opened and Michael came in with a tray, followed by an ever-devoted Ingrate.
“Oh, bless you!” she exclaimed, as she saw the coffee and croissants he’d brought. “I knew there was some reason I kept you around.”
Michael laughed. When he’d set down the tray, he went to open the curtains so they could watch the sun rise over the ocean.
No one objected when Ingrate jumped onto the bed and settled himself comfortably in a nest of covers at the bottom.
Ingrate wasn't supposed to sleep on the bed, but that had never stopped him before.
Allison cuddled up next to Michael when he got under the covers beside her, holding her coffee in one hand and holding onto him with the other. She pressed her cheek against his skin, feeling another poignant stir at the knowledge that it would be almost two weeks before she could see him again. He had meetings scheduled for next weekend, so they wouldn’t be able to get together until the following one.
“What’s the matter?” Michael asked, looking down at her. “Coffee not up to your standards?”
“The coffee is great. I just wish we didn’t have to go home.”
“You wouldn’t want to stay here year round, would you?” Michael asked, sounding genuinely curious.
“No,” she admitted, frowning up at him. “It’s not leaving the beach house, you big idiot. It’s leaving you.”
Michael smiled again, this time so tender it took her breath away. “Thanks for that,” he murmured.
She grunted around the rim of her mug and waited for him to return the sentiment. When he didn’t, her frown turned into a glare.
He appeared distracted now, however. He’d set his own coffee down and was rooting around in the drawer of the nightstand.
“I suppose you’ll be glad to get home,” she said pointedly. She’d thought he’d been in a sweet mood just a moment ago, but now he was acting like he’d mentally moved on to other things.
“What?” he asked absently, shutting the nightstand drawer. “Yeah.”
Allison huffed. “If you were looking for something naughty in that drawer, you can just forget it. I'm not in the mood.”
Michael blinked in surprise. “Did I do something wrong?”
“You just told me you’d be glad to get rid of me.” She narrowed her eyes and gave him her fiercest glare.
To her surprise, Michael’s lips tilted up in amusement. “You know I wasn’t paying attention, and I would never have said something so inane.”
“You just—!” Allison began indignantly, until Michael silenced her with a finger on her lips.
“Don’t get mad. I wanted to give you something. It was distracting me.”
Recognizing the softness in his eyes behind the laughter, Allison decided that maybe he wasn’t being as insensitive as she'd thought. So she relaxed, although she still looked at him suspiciously. “I wouldn’t say no to a present. Although if you think that’s going to make up for—”
She broke off with a gasp when she saw the small velvet pouch in his hand. Her heart started to pound frantically as realization pushed its way into the edges of her mind.
Michael cleared his throat. “Uh, you said you didn’t want us to keep leaving each other.”
Allison’s voice was shaky as she said, “Yeah.”
“So why don’t we do something about that?” Michael looked both pleased and self-conscious as he opened the pouch and dropped a gorgeous, sparkling, very expensive diamond ring on his palm.
Allison made a grab for the ring in a rush of ludicrous excitement. “For me?” she squeaked.
Michael gave a grunt of amusement. “Well, yes. As long as you realize that I come with the ring.”
“For real?” she breathed, staring at him and wondering if it was possible that the impossible was actually happening.
He met her eyes and the corner of his mouth quirked up. “Will you marry me?”
Allison tackled him, keeping the ring safe in her fist as she squeezed Michael as hard as she could.
They were both laughing as he tried to come up for air. “Is that a yes?”
Ingrate, annoyed at this disturbance of his slumbers, jumped off the bed, his paws clicking on the wood floors. Barely conscious of this, Allison squealed, “Yes!”
Michael put the ring on her finger, and something about the expression in his eyes reminded Allison of what Nora had told her six months ago. Underneath all of the layers and intricate complexity that defined his persona, Michael was really kind of old-fashioned.
Just another thing Allison loved about him.
They’d started to kiss when she heard a familiar scratching sound.
Pulling her lips away, she said, “I think Ingrate wants to go out.”
“Nora can take him out,” Michael murmured, grazing kisses along her jaw and up toward her ear. He was already hard, and Allison’s body was responding quickly as well.
“But he can’t get out the door,” Allison objected, taking another intoxicating peek at her gorgeous ring. “The poor fella. He probably has to go.”
With a groan, Michael heaved himself out of the bed and opened the door to let Ingrate outside.
Allison grinned at him from the bed, torn between amusement and an overwhelming tenderness. Michael was wearing only a pair of pajama pants and was visibly aroused. And he looked a little annoyed at the interruption to their romantic moment.
But Allison had never seen anything—anyone—that she’d wanted more than she wanted him.
And the truth hit her with absolute certainty.
He was hers.
When he noticed her expression, he gave her a quizzical look. “What is it?”
“I just love you, Michael,” she said, her voice thick with emotion.
He smiled. “I just love you too.”
They never left the beach house that day, deciding they had better things to do than work.
In the afternoon, a fierce thunderstorm blew in from the east. The wind rattled the windows, and the thunder echoed through the walls.
But Michael and Allison were otherwise occupied and didn't even notice.
***
Thank you for reading! If you enjoyed this book, please consider leaving a review. Sanctuary, the next book in the Reunited Hearts series, about Daniel Lawson, Michael’s friend from Whitesville, is coming soon. If you would like to contact me, please feel free to email me at [email protected].
Storm Front (Reunited Hearts) Page 14